Commitment to Delawareans

Delaware first. These words embody a commitment we take very seriously at UD. As Delaware's flagship university, this is a commitment to the residents of our state to provide an affordable, top-quality education.

Historically, close to 90% of Delawareans who apply are admitted to UD, with approximately 65% gaining a place on our main campus and approximately 25% are admitted to the University’s Associate in Arts Program. Delawareans who apply for admission by the deadline of January 15, can be confident they will never compete with non-Delawareans for spaces at the University.

First in Financial Accessibility

Our aim is to make a UD education affordable to all qualified residents of our state. We pledge to meet the full demonstrated financial need — up to the cost of in-state tuition, fees, a stipend for books, and on-campus room and board — of all Delawareans who file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by the deadline. Understanding how important it is to leave college with as little debt as possible, our goal is that no student will have loans in excess of 25% of the cost of a 4-year education.

Academic Requirements

The goal of our Commitment to Delawareans is to prepare Delaware high school students for admission to the University of Delaware. We remain true to this goal by providing all students in our state with an “academic roadmap," a requirements chart that shows the courses a student must complete and the level of performance a student must achieve to be reasonably confident of gaining admission to the University of Delaware. While we cannot guarantee admission until a student has submitted a complete application, we can lay out what a student needs to do in middle school and grades 9 through 12 to be prepared for Delaware admission. It is important to note that students who do not meet the requirements are still considered for admission and, in many cases, are still admitted to the University of Delaware.

Course Requirements

Course

Years Required

Level

English

4 years

At least college preparatory

Mathematics

4 years

At least college preparatory drawn only from algebra I, algebra II, geometry, trigonometry, statistics, probability, precalculus, and calculus or an equivalent integrated math sequence that incorporates the above

Science

4 years

At least college preparatory; at least 3 of the 4 years must be drawn only from chemistry, biology, and physics and all 3 must include a laboratory; alternatively, you may complete 3 years of an approved integrated science curriculum

History

2 years

At least college preparatory, including one course in world history

Foreign Language

3 years of the same

At least college preparatory and all 3 years must be completed during 9-12 grades

Social Studies

2 years

At least college preparatory and drawn from psychology, political science, government, geography, economics, or sociology; a year of college preparatory science may be substituted for one of the social studies courses

Elective

1 year

At least college preparatory

Additional Academic Requirements

You must complete at least 20 full year academic courses between grades 9 through 12, and at least 5 of those units must be completed during your senior year.

The level of these courses must be at least college preparatory or higher. If your school denotes its course levels with "phases" (with 5 as the highest) then these must be phase 3, 4 or 5 level courses.

At least 2 of these 20 academic courses must be at a level that is higher than college preparatory — for example, "honors," "accelerated," "enriched," "Advanced Placement," "International Baccalaureate," "Academic Challenge." If your school uses course "phases" (with 5 as the highest), then courses denoted as phase 4 or phase 5 would meet this requirement.

Among these 20 full year academic courses, no grade may be below a B- (or the equivalent of a B- according to your school’s grading scale) and your overall cumulative GPA in these academic courses must be at least a B+ or higher.

You must have a record of good conduct in your school and in your community. Students who have been expelled from school, have received suspensions for serious infractions, or have been convicted or adjudicated by the courts are not eligible.

You must be a resident of the State of Delaware and qualify for in-state tuition at the University of Delaware. Your application must be complete by our application deadline, and you must enter the University of Delaware as a freshman for the fall or spring semester immediately following your high school graduation.

You must graduate with a high school diploma from a regionally accredited high school. (We will gladly consider home-schooled students on a case-by-case basis.)

Finally, your 20 academic courses must include those specified in the Course Requirements outlined here.